Bird-cage latch



B. MARKOW BIRD CAGE LATCH Jan. 31, 1928.

c'lled Jan. 15, 1927 JIHHHI R 0 wk N F E m m G n r e B ATTORNEY Patented Jan. 31, i928.

UNITED STATES FATE i @FFlCli.

BERNARD MAEKOW', 01 BRC'QKLYH, NEW YURK, ASSIGNOR 'IO ART CAGE MANU- FACTURING COTLVIPANY, Iii-Tiff. 0T6 NEW ESE-3K, N. 5. OOIRE'ORATION 03? NEW YORK.

BIRD-CAGE LATCH.

Application filed January 15, 1927.

This invention relates to latches for bird cages and is particularly applicable to that type of bird cage in which the bottom may be entirely removed for the purposes of cleaning, or for the replacement of food, water and the like. In such cages it is customary to maize the bottom portion of the cage a distinct and separate unit and to connect the bottom with the cage body by suitable detachable securing means. This invention contemplates the provision of spring means for effectively securing the cage bottom and the cage body together, which means may be readily sprung into inoperative position, into engagement with the cage bars, which cannot be involuntarily or accidentally detached, and which when in operative position is thoroughly eilicient for holding the parts together against relative displacement in any direction.

The varii'ius objects of my invention will be clear trom my description which follows and from the drawings, in which,

Fig. 1 is a perspective View of a portion oi cage and bottom therefor showing the locking meansor latch in operative position.

Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the latch members sprung together preparatory to the removal thereof from the cage body into in operatire position.

S is a vertical side elevation partly in section of a part of a bird cage to which my invention has been applied showing the latch or loching means in operative position and Fig. l is a similar view showing particu larly a modified form of the bearing for the spring latch and showing further the cage body separated from the bottom.

In that embodiment of my invention illustrated, the cage body is designated by the numeral 10 and the-upright bars thereof 11. A rim as 12 of any suitable shape forms the lower edge of the cage 10 and serves as the means for securing the lower ends of the bars 11 in proper spaced relation as is customary. The cage bottom 13 is provided in the usual manner with a horizontal, annular portion i l on which the rim 12 is adapted to rest. To secure the cage .10 to the bottom i3 1 provide a spring latch 15 o1 peculiar shape soon to be described, and preferably formed of a single piece of Serial No. 161,298.

spring wire and so shaped as to clamp the rim 12 down on the portiould and to hook into and engage the bars 11.

The latch 15 is made approximately U- shaped in general outline and is designed to be rotated about the lower end thereof. Said latch includes a pair of upstanding arms suitably bent intermediate of the ends thereof to engage the rim 12 and to hold said rim and the cage body secured thereto in proper position. The upper ends of the spring latch are normally spaced apart by the spring action thereof so that they may be drawn together against the spring action of the remainder of said latch when it is desired to pass said ends to the inside of the cage through the space between the cage bars 11.

In detail, the lowermost horizontal por tion 16 of the latch is supported in a suitable bearing 17 which is in turn properly secured to the rim 1d of the cage bottom As illustrated in Fig. 3, the bearing may consist of a piece of sheet metal 20 bent into cylindrical form to enclose the portion 16 of the latch and soldered to the rim 14. As illustrated in Fig. l, the bearing 17 may be secured to the rim 14 by first maliing a suitable slit in said rim vertically below and substantially parallel to the axis of the cylindrical portion 30 of the bearing, after which the sides of said slit may be depressed to form the depending flanges 21. The bearing 17 may then be made of suiticient depth to provide enough material as 2:2 to pass through the slot between the flanges 21 and to extend below the lowermost edges of said flanges. The extremities of the material 22 may then be clinched over the lower edges of the flanges 21 whereby movement of said bearing in any direction is prevented and said bearing is firmly secured in place, without soldering if desired. It will be understood that the bearing 17 may be secured to the rim in any other suitable manner as may be desired or found advisable.

Upstanding at substantially right angles to the horizontal portion 16 of the latch 15,

are the spring arms 18 which form the legs of the U and which are [normally spaced apart at their upper ends a distance greater than that between the cage bars 11. Said iii) arms however may be sprung together whereby the innermost parts thereof may be moved through the space between said bars 11 from the irside to the outside of the cage. The lower upright portions 19 of said arms 18 are adapted to remain at all times outside of rim 12, and are of such height as to reach the upper surface of the cage rim 12, said lower portions 19 being; preferably spaced at their upper ends a distance less than that between the cage bars 1]. Extending: inwardly from the upper extremities of the portions 19 and arranged substantially parallel to each other, are the rim engaging portions The bar engaging sections 2-31 tend upwardly and divergently from the respective inner ends of the rim engaging portions so that at the bends 32 thereof said sections are normally spaced apart a distance substantially greater than that between the cage bars 11. Extending preferably horizontally toward each other from the bends 32 are the horizontal sections 23, one of which sections is arranged vertically above the other a siiilicient distance to allow it to pass above the other when the sections 31 are forced toward each other, said sections 31 and 23 all preferably lying in the same plane and forming the innermost parts of the latch. At the bends E24: formed at the adjacent ends of the sections 23, are arranged the outwardly projecting linger pieces 25 of suliicient length to allow the ends of said pieces to be readily gripped by one desiring to operate the latch. Finally at the outer end ol the finger pieces are the loops 26, spaced outwardly from the sect-ions 23 a sullicient distance to allow the bars 14: to enter the spaces 33 therebetwecn in the operative position of the latch. (Fig. 1,)

hen it is desired to secure the cage bod to the cage bottom 13, the rim 12 of the cage is arranged on the rim 1% of the bottom with the latch 15 outside of the cage, substantially in the position shown in Fig. l. The latch is then rotated upwardly about the lower portions 16 thereof in the bearing 17, the loops 26 being simultaneously sprung or squeezed together so that the sections 31, E23 and part of the pieces 25 may pass inside of the bars 11. After said sections have been forced into the inside of the cage between a pair of adjacent bars, the loops 26 are :released, whereby the spring action of the arms 18 allows said arms to move away from each other, so that the bars 11 become positioned in the spaces between said loops and the inner sections In this position, the rim engaging sections are clamped firmly down on the upper surface of the rim 12, forcing said rim firmly down on the rim 14 of the cage bottom. It will be seen that the sections 35 cannot; be removed from the rim 12 without bringing the latch members 31 and 28 from the inside to the outside of the cage by a reversal of the lock iug process above described, so that the parts are securely locked together against displacciumit other than that which may be performed at the will of the cage user.

It will further be seen that various n'irinlilicatione may be made in the shapes and pro portions oi the various parts of 1H}; im proved springlatch, falling within the sco ie of this invention and the range of ccpiivalento accorded by the appended claims. I do not wish to be underrlooil therefore as lin'litiup; myself to the specilic structure shown and described but intend to avail m3,"-

scl't of equivalent mculilications which are crmtcmplatcd.

I claim:

1. In a bird cage, a spring latch secured to the outside ot' "will cage, a cage rim engaging section un said latch integral with the rcmaind of said latch and extending inwardl y oi staid cage and a bar engaging section on said latch integral with and or raugci'l above the rim engaging section.

:1. in a bird cage, a latch 0t spring wire, a bearing su iportin the lower end of said latch for rotation in a Vertical plane and spaced portions on said latch oli'set inwardly of said lower end and relatively movable toward and from each other for passage into the lush oi said cage, said portirms assuming; a pi .i ion j iiartly inside and partly outside or said cage when released.

in a bird cage, :1 spring; latch, nit-ans i rotatabl supporting one end of said lch, and spring portions on the other end, .aid latch adapted to he brought together for rotatiim about the supported end the. roll into the inside of said cage and to be releascd to assume subrstantially the nornull position thereof whereby further rotation of said latch is prevented by the cups gene-n1; ol. said portions with said cage.

l. in a bird ca e having a series cl. spaced upr' ht bars therein and a removable base, mean, tor dctachably connecting said base to said bars comprising a subettuitially U shaped spring latch normally open at the upper end, a bearing; on said base, a bcaring engaging member at the lower end of said latch supported by said bearing, inwardly extending rim engaging portions on said latch, and spring arms forming the in nermost parts of said latch, extending upwardly trom said rim engaging portions and adapted to be sj'n'ui'lp; together for passage between adjacent bars or said cage to the inside of said cage and to engage said bars when released.

:3. In a bird cage, a spring; latch of a single piece of spring wire, means at one or ii oi." said latch for rotataliily supporting said latch, and a pair oi. outwardly extending pro ections integral with said latch for pre' venting turther nrrnxement of said latch ll U i ll u ltlfi llll llll'i after said latch has been rotated into op erative position by the engagement thereof with said cage.

b. In a bird cage, a series of spaced up right bars, a base, a rim for the lower ends of said bars, and a spring latch secured to said base, adapted to clamp said rim to said base and to engage said bars whereby involuntary displacement of said latch is prewanted.

7. in a bird case, a series of spaced upright bars, rim for the lower ends of said bars, a latch oi a single piece of wire, free ends on said latch normally spaced apart a distance greater than that. between adjacent bars, outwardly extending members at said ends whereby said latch may be manipulated and said ends brought together the passage of tie innermost extremities thereof between a pair 0 5 adjacent bars and inside of said cage.

8. In a bird cage, spaced bars, a rim securing said bars in spaced relation, a sub stantially Ushaped latch of a single piece of spring wire, a bearing "for the lowermost part of said la ch, upright portions on the lowermost part of the arms or said latch arranger outside of said rim, inw dly extending portions adapted to engag the upper face of said rim and to pass between a pair of bars to the inside of said cage, inclined arms extending upwardly and divcrgently from the inner extremities of said rim engaging portions and forming the innermost parts of said latch, and finger pieces extending outwardly from the upper ends of said arms, one of said pieces being adapted to pass under the other when the arms are squeezed together, whereby said arms may be passed between a pair of ad jacent bars and into the inside of the cage.

9. In a bird cage, a base, latch substantially U-shaped, of a single piece of wire. and adapted to have part thereof passed inside of said cage, a rim securing portion on said latch, arms constituting a bar engaging portion on said latch, and members on said latch secured to said base whereby the arms of said latch may be moved relatively in a horizontal direction.

10. In a bird cage, a series of vertical spaced bars, a rim on said cage, maintaining the lower ends oi said bars in place, a cage bottom, and rotatable wire spring latch for deta chably securing said rim to said bottom comprising a bearing portion rotatably mounted on said bottom, rim engaging portions, bar engaging portions adapted to be sprung together and passed into the inside of said "age between a pair of adjacent bars, and loops at the upper end of said latch spaced outwardly from said bar engaging portions and adapted in the operative position of said latch to be arranged on the outside of said pair at adjacent bars whereby movement of said latch from the operative position prevented unless said loops are first squeezed together.

11. In a bird cage, a series of spaced Vertical bars, a rim maintaining the lower ends of said bars it: place, a removable cage bottom adapted to support said rim and means for detachabiy securing said rim to said bottom conu 'irising a spring latch mounted on said bottom, means on said latch for frictionally engaging said rim and means on said latch adapted to engage a pair of adjacent bars in the operative positionof said latch and adopted to be moved relatively to occupy a space less than the distance between adjacent bars whereby said bar engaging means may be passed between said bars into and out of said cage.

12. In a bird cage, a cage body, including a plurality of upright bars, a cage bottom, and means for securing said body and bottom together comprising a rotatable spring latch secured to said bottom, having spaced ends at the upper extremity thereof, adapted to be sprung together and inserted between, and to pass to the inside of, an adjacent pair of the cage bars.

BERNARD MARKOW. 

